About Project Hessdalen

The Hessdalen Phenomenon and Project Hessdalen

…Hessdalen is really a UFO-laboratory. It’s a place where things are happening and where things can be studied […] whatever it turns out to be it’s terribly important.

(J. Allen Hynek 1985)

The phenomenon

The Hessdalen valley in Norway has long been known for what is called the "Hessdalen Phenomenon" or "Hessdalen Lights", unexplained aerial phenomena reported since the 1800s. 

A significant increase in sightings occurred between 1981 and 1985, with up to 20 sightings per week. The number of reported sightings has since decreased to about 20 per year. But the actual numbers might be much higher. 

Phenomenon Characteristics                                                                                               

A 1984 field report concluded that the phenomenon is measurable. During this initial investigation, 53 observations of anomalous light phenomena were recorded. These observations included visual captures on camera, radar detections, and magnetometer readings. 

There are four main types of anomalous phenomena in Hessdalen: 

Type 1: Blue or white flashes lasting up to 2 seconds, occurring under all weather conditions and not attracted to electrical cables like ordinary lightnings would be.

Type 2: Mostly yellow lights of various shapes, lasting from minutes to hours, stationary or moving at various speeds. Can have another light attached to it, often red or green. Furthermore, these lights can split, send beams and contain multiple smaller balls of light within a larger orb. 

Type 3: Multiple lights appearing to be attached to a single object, as when it moves all the lights move together. 

Type 4: Looks like solid objects of various shapes, including saucer and cigar shapes. 

These phenomena have sometimes been detected by radar and seen visually at the same time. Sometimes they can only be picked up by radar but not visually and vice versa. 

Under the following links you find some video footage of the phenomenon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSjcDzIYkP4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdjgWzOdVZA

Project Hessdalen: Pioneering Scientific Investigation

Founded in 1983, Project Hessdalen has been at the forefront of scientific investigation into the Hessdalen phenomena. The project has collaborated with scientists, organized science camps for students and participated in workshops and conferences. Project Hessdalen has received coverage in mainstream media and became a non-profit organization in 2023. 

Notably, the project received support from the Norwegian military between 1983 and 1985. 

The Blue Box

In 1998, the project installed the "Blue Box," a shipping container equipped with electricity, internet, and an array of sensors, including a camera transmitting live footage 24/7. 

Currently Project Hessdalen is working on upgrading the cameras to 8 Megapixel and to a more powerful computer to run a BOB Universal Object Tracker, a software for detecting, tracking and recording objects in the sky.

The “Interdisciplinary Research Center for Extraterrestrial" (IFEX) also installed a SkyCam 5, connected to an AI alarm system. The alarm pictures and videos from this system are being sent to IFEX.

The Blue Box is also outfitted with a flight detector, weather station, radar and a Random Event Generator (REG). Plans are underway to deploy high-speed automated drones to closely approach the phenomena. 

Key Scientific Collaborators

Erling Strand, founder and current chairman of Project Hessdalen. MSc.EE in physical electronics and telecommunications technology. Former European representative of the Society for Scientific Exploration (SSE) and key personnel of the International Earthlight Alliance (IEA). Currently consulting scientist at "the UFOdata.net". 

Massimo Teodorani, Astrophysicist with a Ph.D. in astronomy, specializing in stellar physics. Expert in photometric and spectroscopic observational techniques. Carried out research on extrasolar planets and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Former research affiliate of The Galileo Project (Harvard University).

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Hakan Kayal, Chair of Space Technology at Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg. Conference President, Chairman and founder of the "Interdisciplinary Research Center for Extraterrestrial" (IFEX) where space technology, the Search for Extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) and the investigation of UFOs/UAP are studied. 

Partnerships

Project Hessdalen collaborates with the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU), the Interdisciplinary Research Center for Extraterrestrial (IFEX) and the International Coalition for Extraterrestrial Research (ICER).